The present invention relates in general to computers and, more particularly, to an extender card for use with computers. While the present invention is generally applicable to extender cards for computers, it will be described herein with reference to a PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) extender card which provides access to a laptop computer having a PCMCIA slot for port replication through the PCMCIA slot.
Unlike desktop computers, laptop computers are made to be readily portable. To facilitate portability, laptops include limiting characteristics which are tolerated when traveling. Such characteristics include smaller screens, smaller keyboards, less useful pointing devices, printers which while portable are limited in capability, and the like. Since these limiting characteristics are not tolerated when one is at a home location, oftentimes users have a desktop computer at a home location and a laptop for travel.
To get around laptop limitations and eliminate computer duplication, full sized peripherals can be purchased and connected to a laptop so that the laptop functions as the processor at a home location but is accessed via a conventional keyboard, uses conventional pointing devices, uses a standard sized monitor, has access to more conventional printers, and the like. One means of connecting full sized peripherals to a laptop computer is a docking station to which the laptop is connected for use of the full sized/capability peripherals. Another means of connecting full sized/capability peripherals to a laptop computer is a port replicator. Unfortunately, most docking stations and port replicators are compatible with only a single make and model of laptop computer. And for many laptop computers, no docking stations or port replicators are available from the manufacturer at all.
To accommodate users of such laptop computers and in the interest of making access to full sized peripherals universally available to laptop users regardless of the makes or models of their laptops, universal port replicators are now commercially available. For example, an attractive universal port replicator is available from CNF, Inc. under the name "theBUS". This port replicator connects into a laptop or other computer via an available Type II PCMCIA slot using an extender card which has a first end sized to be received within the slot and connect to the internal PCMCIA connector and a second end which extends beyond the outer surface of the computer and has a cable extending therefrom to "theBUS".
To make such port replicators reliable, the extender cards which connect the port extenders to the computers must be strong to avoid breakage as they extend beyond the outside of computers. Preferably, the extender cards are also inexpensive to reduce the overall cost of the port replicators. Since the extender card occupies only one Type II PCMCIA slot, it would be desirable to enable a person using the port replicator to also use another PCMCIA card or PC card in another available PCMCIA slot immediately adjacent the one occupied by the extender card. For example, the user may have a network or modem PCMCIA card in the laptop and want to use that card for communications when traveling and when at a home location.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved extender card which can be used for connecting a laptop computer to a port replicator as well as for other computer applications.